


Saving the Kid

by Katie_Madison



Series: reading between the stars ☆ [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Author loves Chewie, Canon Compliant, Chewie Knows Everything, Falling In Love, Fluff, Han Saving Luke, Han in denial, HanLuke - Freeform, Hoth (Star Wars), Hurt!Luke Skywalker, M/M, Protective!Han Solo, Set in The Empire Strikes Back, That Poor TaunTaun : (, Who Saves the World, and it shows, skysolo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:55:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22470628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katie_Madison/pseuds/Katie_Madison
Summary: Chewie makes some characteristically astute observations about the feelings of his best friend towards an awkward little farmboy with a penchant for alarming recklessness.(Oh, Han, you poor, poor man)
Relationships: Chewbacca & Han Solo, Luke Skywalker & Han Solo, Luke Skywalker/Han Solo
Series: reading between the stars ☆ [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1645984
Comments: 13
Kudos: 262





	Saving the Kid

**Author's Note:**

> As Star Wars once again rules the media, I couldn't help but think back to one of the many moments I loved in the Original Trilogy, specifically the Empire Strikes Back, and its connotations for Han Solo and Luke Skywalker.
> 
> Also featuring my main man, Chewie, who wonders why nobody ever asks him for anything even when they really, really should.
> 
> Please Enjoy!

After Luke is removed off of Han’s back by numerous medics and medical robots, all reassuringly promising Han that his fast thinking in placing the young jedi inside his TaunTaun’s fresh corpse ensured that they could save their resident Rebel Hero, the Millennium Falcon's exhausted captain finds himself dragging his tired, freezing caracass of a body aboard his ship for a new set of dry clothes.

And upon seeing him enter, Chewie makes a characteristically astute observation in _Shyriiwook_.

“ _We,"_ he begins, " _Were supposed to leave."_

Han, in response, just rolls his eyes and replies in a voice dripping with sarcasm, “Yeah... We _were.._. But things got a little complicated _,_ buddy."

His tone almost passes for Han's usual, casual drawl, but his teeth are chattering together in shivers. 

Chewie stops working on tightening a bolt near the ship's ceiling and narrows his eyes at Han, a telling expression even under all of his thick fur, “ _And yet, we aren’t leaving anymore either._ ”

“No,” Han says with another emphasizing lazy eyeroll, “We aren’t.”

Too bad for him, however, that his seemingly blazé attitude has never fooled Chewie and that no matter how many times Han rolls his eyes, Chewie sees the sincerity of Han’s desire to stay...

(And this time, he’s sure he knows why too.)

The Wookie grins.

“ _So… even though…_ ,” Chewie continues slowly, returning to his work as Han shrugs into a new clean shirt, “ _Luke is definitely going to be alright… And we were all set to leave tomorrow... And you had even told Leia as much..._ _We’re staying..._ ”

“You think?” Han rhetorically mocks, “What else could we do? Sure, we were set to leave, but then the kid goes and gets himself nearly killed!… What else could happen? I gotta be around to, you know, save that naïve, little... farmboy, or whatever!”

Chewie turns around and tilts his head in question, “ _But not Leia?_ ”

Han sighs and looks down to re-strap in his holster over new warm pants. Chewie recognizes them as Han's nicest pair, its colors unfaded and the fabric tailored to his form just a few months ago.

(He raises a woolly hand to cover his grinning, unable to stop wondering about _why_ Han may have specifically chose to change into such _flattering_ garments, when all they were scheduled to do today was make repairs on the Falcon and check on Luke.)

“Yeah, I know she’s ~madly~ in love with me… And wants me to stay... And it would be the heroic thing to say that I have gotta stay here for her, " Han answers honestly, "But really... She can save her own damn self…”

Chewie lets out of a sound of humored and fond agreement, since it was true that Leia could definitely save herself, but then he pauses, “ _...But Luke - he needs to be saved?_ ”

“Yeah! That’s what I've been talking about,” Han says gruffly, coming over to smack Chewie across the back, as though trying to snap him out of his slow stupor and get with the obvious program already, “Sure, he’s a good pilot and fighter… But he’s just a dumb, reckless kid who's all alone without a shred of self-preservation instinct... And now he's _stupidly_ pledged himself to the Rebel Alliance, and that Kenobi guy ain't even looking out for him anymore... So, you know-,”

Yes.

Chewie _does_ know. 

The Wookie suddenly stands up, enveloping Han in a swift hug.

“ _You always act like a bad guy, but I know you’re a great one,_ ” he happily announces. 

Suddenly enveloped in fur, Han resists as he usually does when encountering Wookie affection, complaining of strangulation and reaching up to try and dislodge the limbs of his best friend, expectedly failing to make any real progress against his much stronger shipmate.

However, he abruptly stops moving entirely when Chewie says, 

“... _You're a great guy who cares deeply for Luke._ ”

Hearing those words, Han feels his breathe hitch in his throat as he grows rigid under Chewie’s hands, standing paralyzed even moments after the Wookie lets go in concern. Belatedly, after frantically shaking his head clear, Han darts across the room, hurriedly turning to face the wall to try and conceal whatever the hell that loaded pause was.

Chewie just raises an eyebrow.

“Yeah, well!” Han bursts out, nervous under the other's probing eyes, throwing his hands up before fiddling with the temperature control panel before him, “… Who else... _cares_ for that awkward… little… kid? Who else would-”

“- _Run through a dangerous blizzard to save him?_ ” Chewie interrupts in an uncharacteristically mellow grunt. 

Han's stuttering fingers come to a halt hovering over the intercom speaker, and Chewie sees his shoulders rise up and frustratedly bunch under the thin fabric of his shirt, “…I just-, I know... that-,”

Thankfully, before he is forced to choke out another mangled word, Chewie simply hums in warm (nonjudgemental) understanding, “ _Yeah_. _I agree that we belong here..._ ”

In the following moment, there is complete silence in the Falcon, broken at long last only by its captain letting out a labored sigh, running his fingers through his messy hair, “I’m… glad you agree... I wouldn't force you to stay, you know, but I... think we gotta stay... too.”

Chewie nods his head even though Han is still facing away, (too embarrassed to face his firstmate while blushing like a damn fool), but Chewie knows that Han will recognize the familiar rustling sounds that his fur made when he nodded.

“ _All I_ _want you to know,”_ Chewie concludes gently, once it seemed that the tension in the moment had largely dissipated, turning back around to sit at his seat, “ _Is that the next time you go running around in sub-zero temperatures to save your beloved farmboy, you really should consult me, your very best friend who just ~happens~ to be covered in self-insulating, incredibly thick, extremely warm fur._ ”

Han groans and smacks his head against the Falcon’s wall. The ship beeps loudly in protest and lights up pink.

“…Duly noted.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading this fluffy little piece : )  
> If you enjoyed this, consider checking out more works that are a part of this Han Solo / Luke Skywalker series, 'reading between the stars ☆'. 
> 
> Oh! And follow me at my new fandom tumblr @  
>  **https://kmtranslationsxxx.tumblr.com** if you'd like to be internet friends! ヽ(´▽｀)/
> 
> Please leave kudos, comments and bookmarks if you enjoyed ♡


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